Is Survival Selfish by Lane Wallace

Unit 5: Is Survival Selfish?

9th Grade

Check your understanding

Multiple Choice

How does the author support her claim that people are sometimes blamed for saving themselves?

• A By arguing that some people are heroes and other people are not

• B By asking the reader questions that force them to assign blame

• C By giving examples of what happened during and after a crisis

• D By showing that it takes selfishness to want to save yourself

Multiple Choice

The author concludes her argument with —

• A recommendations for what you should do in a live-or-die situation

• B another example that explains what being selfish in a crisis means

• C a story about a friend who says you have to be brave and foolish

• D generalizations arguing that the issue is not so simple

Analyze the text

Open Ended

Answer the following question in no less than 3 sentences.

In the final paragraph, Wallace writes that there can be “a fine line between smart and selfish,” and that “sometimes there’s no line at all between the two.” What does she mean by this apparent contradiction? How does her conclusion restate her claim?